HYDERABAD: Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy said that the state government would once again urge the Centre to confer the Padma Shri posthumously on noted poet and writer Ande Sri. He also announced that the government would construct a memorial park in the poet’s honour and provide a government job to one of his family members.
Revanth, along with several ministers, attended Ande Sri’s last rites at Ghatkesar on Tuesday. The chief minister also served as a pallbearer, giving his shoulder to the bier of the departed writer during the funeral procession, which was attended by thousands of admirers and literary enthusiasts.
Ande Sri’s wife Mallubai, daughters Vaakkulamma, Vennela, Vekuva, and son Dattu performed the rituals as per Hindu traditions. The funeral was conducted with full police honours.
Later, speaking to reporters, Revanth said, “The state government had written to the Union government last year, requesting that the Padma Shri be conferred on Ande Sri, but no positive response was received. We will write again and appeal to the Centre to consider the request.”
He also urged Union Minister for Coal and Mines G Kishan Reddy and Union Minister of State for Home Bandi Sanjay Kumar to support the state government’s efforts in securing the honour for the poet, who penned Telangana’s official song “Jaya Jayahe Telangana.”
“Let both the state and Central governments work together to honour this great Telangana writer,” he added.
The chief minister said that Ande Sri’s acclaimed collection “Nippula Vaagu” would serve as a guiding light like the Bhagavad Gita, the Bible, and the Quran for those fighting for the issues of Telangana. He announced that 20,000 copies of the book would be published and distributed to libraries across the state.
Recalling his close association with the poet, Revanth said that Ande Sri’s demise was an irreparable loss to him personally and to Telangana society at large.
“When I was TPCC president, I met him and urged him to contribute towards addressing the problems faced by the people of Telangana. Every song written by Gaddar and Ande Sri has been a source of inspiration to the people. It was for this reason that the state Cabinet decided to include Ande Sri’s song ‘Jaya Jayahe Telangana’ in the school curriculum,” he stated.
Ministers D Sridhar Babu, Jupally Krishna Rao, Danasari Anasuya, Ponnam Prabhakar, Adluri Laxman Kumar, government advisors Vem Narender Reddy and K Keshava Rao, and TPCC president Mahesh Kumar Goud were among those who attended the funeral.